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General => Technical Help => Topic started by: Gen List Lass on Monday 20 May 19 20:45 BST (UK)
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I used to have a great little ASUS notebook that went all over the world with me. When it died of exhaustion, I tried to find something similar but technology had left notebooks behind and tablets were the thing. I bought a laptop instead.
Now I am finding it too heavy to lug it around everywhere especially as it needs charging after 1 and a 1/2 hours. The charger is a universal replacement and weighs a ton.
I run Windows 10 and FTM 2017 on my laptop so I would need something compatible. Also, I would like a keyboard with the tablet and a much longer battery charge.
Any ideas anyone?
P/S I have a SamsungGalaxy mobile, my 4th!
Gen in NBL UK
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I don’t have a definitive answer to this question, but posting to bring it back up the list.
If you have an ancestry account I would just put the Ancestry app onto which ever device it suited you to have.
I’m sure FTM must have an android compatible app. But I am fairly sure they do not have one for iPad. So probably a Samsung Galaxy or something like that is worth looking at.
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I've just checked and Google Store has a version of FTM for Android. I'm very happy with my Samsung Galaxy phone so I'd recommend a Galaxy tablet.
Added - just checked and the consumer evaluation site recommends the Samsung Galaxy and Lenovo as the best android tablets.
You can also get Windows tablets but they are more expensive - Microsoft, Samsung and HP
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My preference is an ipad fitted into a case with a Logitech keyboard. I don't think there is an FTM app for the Apple platform, but I have never felt the need to look for one. I work in Ancestry when I am out and about then synchronise to FTM when I get home.
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App for iOS (ie ipad) is available - see here https://www.rootsmagic.com/app/
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I'm not sure that you can run FTM on ipads.
Gen List Lass's spec was:
I run Windows 10 and FTM 2017 on my laptop so I would need something compatible
That was why I recommended the ones I did, as well as they are (according to the Which site) as good or better than the ipad.
Added - I've checked but have to run conversions.
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Correct Gadget, There is no way to run FTM on an ipad. My point was that you don’t actually need to. You can work on Ancestry on the ipad then synch to FTM on a Windows PC. I did this back in the days before I replaced my Windows laptop with a MacBook. I usually use the website rather than the Ancestry app when I am working on my ipad.
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It might help if GLL gives us some idea of the amount she wants to spend on it.
I keep my Microsoft machines for admin stuff and FH and my Macs for images/art work ;D
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I have a Lenovo Yoga Book. It's like a mini laptop, in that it has an attached keyboard, but this can be folded back on itself to (effectively) be a tablet. Less than 1cm thick and weighs about 1.5kg, so nicely lighter than a laptop. Battery life is coming in around 10-11 hours, although obviously that would depend on what you are using it for (manual says "up to 15 hours"). Charges using a standard mini-USB cable (like a lot of phones).
My one is a Android version, but they do have a Windows 10 version, but that is a bit more expensive (have to pay Bill Gates' pension I suppose ;))
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Thanks for all your ideas, kind people.
I rather fancy the sound of either the Samsung or Lenovo tablet. Samsung have been giving me good mobile phone service for donkeys years and I've got a Lenovo tv which I'd never heard of but performs perfectly well. So.....I will check out both.
As for price, this will be my secondary piece of pc kit so not too much or too little.
The thought of having to download a FTM conversion sounds horrendous. I don't have my tree on Ancestry apart from the basic one for DNA matching purposes. So I want a tablet that will run FTM just like my laptop plus sync as often as I go to the archives i.e. twice a week. Conversions! Yikes they went out with the PC dark ages, didnt they?!!
I wouldn't want to use FTM on my mobile, the screen's just too tiny.
Gen in NBL UK (sometimes)
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A branch of that well known electrical/computer store at Silverlink has a good range that you could try before you buy :)
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Gadget - Ooo I like the sound of that. I've been caught out twice with nastily configured keyboards bought online!
Got my last laptop there! Thanks for the tipoff.
Gen in NBL UK
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I've been looking at FTMGTG, the app for using FTM on a tablet. It looks as though every time I work on an FTM file on a tablet, I have to make a GEDCOM and transfer it to my laptop and open it there, to update the laptop FTM I'm working on, on both devices. And vice versa, from laptop to tablet
This seems very old-school, as I reading it correctly?
Gen in NBL UK
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That is probably because the version of FTM produced when MacKiev took it over was initially designed to synchronise with Ancestry. They probably do not put much time and effort into working on integrated synch with other tools. You can read about their synch here: https://www.mackiev.com/ftm/features/familysync.html (https://www.mackiev.com/ftm/features/familysync.html).
If you are planning to use any other app to synch with your files on FTM you should be sure to backup before you start and regularly thereafter as any problems resulting from an unrelated app synch may not be covered by MacKiev support teams.
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Craclyn....this gets complicated. As you know, I don't keep my main FT on Ancestry and never will. So FTM ONLY syncing with Ancestry is no use to me.
When I had my notebook pc, I use to transfer my latest file via USB cable to my laptop and vice versa. That ensured I had the latest version on both. Maybe I could do the same with a tablet? What file extension does FTM use on a tablet?
My main FTM tree goes onto a cloud every month or earlier if the occasion demands.
Gen in NBL UK
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Yes, I know you have no plans to put your whole tree on Ancestry. If you ever change your mind about that you could make it private and unsearchable then nobody can see anything on it at all.
Transferring your FTM file to a tablet is no problem. Just download it from your cloud. The first problem then is what software would you use to process it? Then you have the constant upload and download as you move between machines. A plain tablet runs apps, not programmes such as FTM. Maybe what you are really looking for is a tablet/laptop hybrid that can handle both. You could keep your main FTM file in the cloud so you can access it from different machines when you are at home and at the archives.
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I have a Lenovo Yoga Book. It's like a mini laptop, in that it has an attached keyboard, but this can be folded back on itself to (effectively) be a tablet. Less than 1cm thick and weighs about 1.5kg, so nicely lighter than a laptop. Battery life is coming in around 10-11 hours, although obviously that would depend on what you are using it for (manual says "up to 15 hours"). Charges using a standard mini-USB cable (like a lot of phones).
My one is a Android version, but they do have a Windows 10 version, but that is a bit more expensive (have to pay Bill Gates' pension I suppose ;))
Do you like the Lenovo Yoga? We are likely to get them in work - by the end of the year - instead of our current desktops for flexibility.
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I have a Lenovo Yoga Book. It's like a mini laptop, in that it has an attached keyboard, but this can be folded back on itself to (effectively) be a tablet. Less than 1cm thick and weighs about 1.5kg, so nicely lighter than a laptop. Battery life is coming in around 10-11 hours, although obviously that would depend on what you are using it for (manual says "up to 15 hours"). Charges using a standard mini-USB cable (like a lot of phones).
My one is a Android version, but they do have a Windows 10 version, but that is a bit more expensive (have to pay Bill Gates' pension I suppose ;))
Do you like the Lenovo Yoga? We are likely to get them in work - by the end of the year - instead of our current desktops for flexibility.
I too have an android version, I like it but the keyboard takes some getting used to. I doubt they would be a good alternative to a desktop, I only use it for light stuff. Fast touch typing isn’t possible, I suggest you google the reviews on the model your company are looking at. You can’t attach a portable hard drive and the micro connections means I have had to order new cables. In a work environment, I would suggest a laptop would be better, but it does depend on what they are going to be used for. I wish I had waited a little bit, the W10 version is now cheaper than the android on the model I purchased... Hopefully the newer models have some of the earlier issues ironed out.
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Thanks, that’s interesting. There was discussion about laptop v tablet but the tablet won by all accounts. Will be networked so guess the external hard drive won’t be an issue. Looking forward to the flexibility to work at home but the keyboard sounds like it might be a pain.
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In my view, the keyboard response and size is the only issue, everything else can be got round without being too annoying. I love the fact that it flips and has a touchscreen and is extremely light.
Years ago, I was given a keyboard for my iPad as a present, I don’t use it but it does respond well/better than the yoga book.
Jenny
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Thanks
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I have a Lenovo Yoga Book. It's like a mini laptop, in that it has an attached keyboard, but this can be folded back on itself to (effectively) be a tablet. Less than 1cm thick and weighs about 1.5kg, so nicely lighter than a laptop. Battery life is coming in around 10-11 hours, although obviously that would depend on what you are using it for (manual says "up to 15 hours"). Charges using a standard mini-USB cable (like a lot of phones).
My one is a Android version, but they do have a Windows 10 version, but that is a bit more expensive (have to pay Bill Gates' pension I suppose ;))
Do you like the Lenovo Yoga? We are likely to get them in work - by the end of the year - instead of our current desktops for flexibility.
I too have an android version, I like it but the keyboard takes some getting used to. I doubt they would be a good alternative to a desktop, I only use it for light stuff. Fast touch typing isn’t possible, I suggest you google the reviews on the model your company are looking at. You can’t attach a portable hard drive and the micro connections means I have had to order new cables. In a work environment, I would suggest a laptop would be better, but it does depend on what they are going to be used for. I wish I had waited a little bit, the W10 version is now cheaper than the android on the model I purchased... Hopefully the newer models have some of the earlier issues ironed out.
Yoga is almost a "sub brand" of Lenovo. They have the Yoga Book, which is more like a tablet with an attached keyboard. Being like a tablet, they don't have a full size USB, so you need different cables (or an adaptor to convert). Yes the keyboard is an acquired taste. I get on OK with it and have got to a reasonable speed (well, my normal typing isn't too fast, so not saying much. LOL). In tablet or tent modes the screen keyboard can be used (it is a 10.1" touch screen). My one also has the drawing/note taking stylus, so I find it very useful or meeting or archive visits.
Yoga also is used as a laptop brand (which I bought previously - Yoga 500). It shares the multi-angle hinge (hence the Yoga name) and touchscreen. This has the usual laptop functionality and ports, so no need for other cables/adaptors. Also the usual screen sizes (I have 14.1")
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Thanks for the info. Will have to wait and see how it goes.
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I was really keen on the Yoga until I read that the keyboard is slow.
The only thing I would be using this for would be to add data to my FTM at the archives, so maybe not the best option. Shame, all else sounds good.
Gen in NBL UK
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The Windows 10 version of the Yoga book would work well at the archives, that is my regret for getting the Android version over of the W10 version.
I don't think I type fast when I enter details in my family tree program and always check I have typed it in correct anyway.
I agree with RD, the keyboard is an acquired taste, like anything new, it just takes a little bit of practice. ;D If you turn the keyboard back so that the screen looks like a normal tablet, you can type using the screen keyboard which works quite well.
I don't think there is anything else on the market that has the same flexibility yet, the Yoga book was well ahead of its time.
Jenny
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I have just ordered a Lenovo Yoga small laptop (Windows 10 version). I think it will suit all I need for the archives and overseas trips. ( I don't type all that fast so I think it will keep up with me:-)
Thank you everyone for all your help! Much appreciated.
Gen in NBL UK
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I'm getting on well with my Lenovo Yoga 11e, its very similar to the ASUS notebook I had in size, keyboard etc. Maybe a little heavier but I don''t have to lug the charger to the archives with me.
Now looking into syncing my 2 laptops - just the genealogy stuff.
Gen in NBL UK